Simon’s Pick, May, 2008: 2006 Ferraton Cotes du Rhone Blanc, “Samorens”

Friday, May 2nd, 2008

Simon at Larchmont Wine & Spirits picks his wine of the month completely independently of domaine547, and though we happen to like a lot of the same wines, it just so happens that his picks have not coincided with our inventory. Until now. We’re proud to announce that this month, Simon picked a Cotes du Rhone from Ferraton Pere et Fils (now owned by Chapoutier, and an organic and biodynamic enterprise) that we’ve been carrying with pride for the past six weeks. And it looks like his reaction to the wine was very similar to ours.

Pick this beauty of a white up in LA at Larchmont Wine (323-856-8699) or you can order from us, as we have it in stock! (NB, for a wine this good, and this reasonable — just $12.99 — we’re surprised that so few retailers are carrying it. A check on wine-searcher comes up nearly empty). Simon says: Read more…

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Simon’s Pick, April 2008: 2006 Sisyphus Red, Herder Vineyard, J.R. Storey Winery, Paso Robles

Friday, April 11th, 2008

We apologize to Simon at Larchmont Wine for being a week and a half late posting his wine of the month pick for April. This one rings in at only $12.99 a bottle and sounds interesting. Call 323-856-8699 and ask for Simon if you’d like to order some, or stop on by Larchmont Wine & Spirits for a number 5 sandwich (our favorite) and a few bottles of carefully curated vino, including this one. Simon says:

“This Spring, as the world seems to be rapidly steering itself into a ditch, we could all do with a cheer up. This aptly named red from Paso Robles is a tribute to all the toilers (er…most of us then) and strugglers who make it through another oh-so-trying day.

One would suppose that the tasks of the day are not entirely Sisyphean if you’ve got a bottle of this to look forward to at the end of it…However that said, we liked the idea behind the label and were very pleased with this attractive blend of 80% Syrah and 20% Grenache. Big and bold on the nose, this offers up plenty of blueberry, blackcurrant, smoke and spice on the palate, and is quite intense, plump and mouth-filling for a wine at this price. The ripe fruit dominates, and is thankfully not overwhelmed by excessive alcohol, which sometimes afflicts wines from this area. This is a well-balanced juicy red, ideal for smoothing out the kinks of another spin around our axis.

Serve liberally with roasted meats, grilled lamb sausages, robust pastas, hearty soups or just your favorite hunk of cheese and bread combo.” –SC

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get your wine on

2006 Ferraton Cotes du Rhone Blanc, “Les Samorens”

Simon says you should check this out. And so do we. Looking for a budget white for all your summer sipping? Look no farther…Fetch me some Ferraton

2006 Eric Kent Spring Releases

We love the Eric Kent labels, and we’re even more excited about the wine inside them. Okay, scratch that. We’re equally excited, since these labels are about the best wine labels we’ve ever seen (short of our own upcoming release, which you’ll hear plenty about, eventually). Go check out the Eric Kent wines and treat yourself to a sensory experience that encompasses taste, touch, smell and sight.Can I get some Kent?

Rosé - old vintage clearance

We’re doing a little spring cleaning and the first thing in store is to get the older vintages of Rosé off our shelves as we prepare for some new ones to appear. Not that there’s anything wrong with these 2006s (and in one case, a lovely 05). These are drinking well still, and at 30% off they’re priced to go.Everything’s coming up Rosés…

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freshly pressed

domaine547 events: Tablas Creek wine dinner at Campanile, June 3rd, 2008:

We’re excited to announce that we’re hosting a wine dinner at Campanile Restaurant on June 3rd, with the esteemed Tablas Creek Vineyard. Not only does Tablas Creek have one of the best wine blogs around, written by winery manager Jason Haas, but their wines rock.

For those of you who don’t know, they are owned in part by the Perrin family of Chateau de Beaucastel in Chateauneuf-du-Pape, and they have painstakingly brought over clones of all the Beaucastel Southern Rhone varieties and replanted them in Paso Robles (see full history of the winery here). The results are incredible, and you will be able to taste through the entire line-up of Tablas Creek wines at Campanile, including their Vin de Paille dessert wine which is tiny production and usually only available at the winery. (more…)

domaine547 events: Tablas Creek wine dinner at Campanile, June 3rd, 2008

May 8th, 2008

Wine Blogging Wednesday #45 (okay, Thursday): “Old World Riesling” hosted by Tim at Winecast

May 8th, 2008

Poll: posting reviews and feedback on wine retail sites

May 6th, 2008

wine jargon

Frizzante
From Wikipedia: Frizzante is an Italian wine term term for semi-sparkling wine (as opposed to Spumante, which is generally used for fully sparkling wines). Frizzante wines generally owe their bubbles to a partial secondary fermentation in tank. You might notice a light fizz or tingly sensation on the tongue with a Frizzante wine, compared to the more carbonated sensation that more fully sparkling wines yield.

Scorekage
Okay, so we made up this word yesterday after a great restaurant experience. We brought a bottle of wine with us, expecting to pay a corkage fee. But the restaurant either forgot to charge us the $15, or decided to be nice to us. We scored! Hence, “scorekage” has entered our lexicon. This can also refer to BYO friendly restaurants that don’t charge for corkage under any circumstances.

Frizzante

March 29th, 2008

Scorekage

March 23rd, 2008

Rioja

March 3rd, 2008

grapewise

There’s a good article in this morning’s Food section of the LA Times, on Cabernet Franc. It would be better, of course, if it linked to the three included wines available through d547 (Chateau Hureau Saumur-Champigny, Chateau Vieux Clos, and the Lang & Reed). But we still think you should read the piece — and […]

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